On this day (September 12) in 1989, Aerosmith released Pump. The LP was an international hit, landing in the top 10 in 10 countries and topping the Australian albums chart. It peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified 7x Platinum in the United States and Canada. The tracklist was packed with classic songs that exemplify the glam metal boom of the late 1980s. The album also brought the band multiple legal issues.
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Pump produced four major hit singles. “Love in an Elevator” went to No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock chart and No. 5 on the Hot 100. “Janie’s Got a Gun” was a No. 2 rock hit and crossed over at No. 4. “What It Takes” and “The Other Side” topped the rock chart and peaked at No. 9 and No. 22 on the Hot 100, respectively.
[RELATED: How Aerosmith Scored Their Last Top 40 Hit Nearly 26 Years After Their First]
The album and its singles sold like hot cakes. Then came the legal issues.
Pump Lands Aerosmith in Court
In early October 1989, Todd Ganci, frontman of a New England-based band called Pump, contacted Aerosmith’s management, claiming that the band infringed on his service mark with their album’s title. A service mark functions like a trademark but is used to identify a service instead of a product. The case went to the United States District Court in Massachusetts.
Pump, an acronym for Promoting Unlimited Mental Power, was originally a band that was “composed of muscular anti-drug crusaders” who promote “physical self-improvement as an alternative to drugs, thereby providing a positive role model for today’s youth,” according to court documents.
The album and Ganci’s band didn’t just share the same name. During an interview, the band said they chose the title Pump because they had kicked their habits and were “pumped up” about life. Armed with these facts, the bodybuilder turned rocker filed his lawsuit. Unsurprisingly, the court found in favor of Aerosmith.
“Here, it borders on ridiculous to argue, as counsel for Pump, Inc. did yesterday at oral arguments, that Aerosmith adopted the name Pump in the hope that purchasers would mistake its album for one of the band Pump,” the judgment read, in part. “A world-famous group such as Aerosmith, enjoying a strong base of loyal teenage support, would have absolutely no reason for stealing the name of an unknown band to sell its records. Indeed, such an action would be irrational. The Aerosmith name sells well enough on its own.”
“The Other Side” Almost Landed the Band in Court a Second Time
“The Other Side” was a No. 1 hit for the band that remains a fan favorite today. The songwriting team, Holland-Dozier-Holland, famous for writing major Motown hits for the likes of the Supremes and the Four Tops, were fans of the song’s melody. They liked it so much that they allegedly used it for their song “Standing in the Shadows of Love.” The Four Tops took the song to No. 6 on the Hot 100 in 1967.
“Motown had already successfully sued KISS for ‘I Was Made for Lovin’ You,’ claiming that it, too, sounded like ‘Standing in the Shadows of Love.’ As a result, Steven’s lawyer recommended we not fight the charge,” co-writer Jim Valance wrote. “That’s why the credits for ‘The Other Side’ read Tyler-Valance-Holland-Dozier-Holland.”
Featured Image by Ron Pownall/Getty Images
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